“Most people — and I’ll include myself here — were raised to be fairly soft spoken, raised to fit in with others both in their speech and by their actions … and most importantly, raised not to talk too strongly about themselves, particularly not to brag about themselves to others.

There is nothing wrong in being raised this way; in fact, it’s one of the reasons that society functions as well as it does. The problem is that most people take this behavior too much to heart and continue to be soft spoken and unassertive when they talk to themselves; it’s as if they’ve learned society’s dictates too well.

I call this kind of behavior ‘being in Clark Kent mode,’ and what I’m about to do is give you a direct challenge to talk to yourself in a second, very different way.”

How To Get Into Superman Mode

You don’t have to change your clothes to get into Superman mode. Just change your self-talk.

“I call this ‘getting into Superman mode and here’s what I’m getting at: When you talk to yourself as if you are that powerful, indomitable person … do you suppose that little by little, the person you are will start merging with the person, and you’ll start finding yourself growing stronger?

Have you ever – either on television or in person – seen someone talk with tremendous belief and confidence about a subject … about themselves, about something they totally believed in, about their company or their country?

If you have, you probably were convinced not only by the words he or she used, but by everything else: their body language, the tones of their voice, the way they used their hands.

That person was in Superman mode.”

Exercise: Generating Strong Emotion

Teitelbaum provides a very simple exercise. Say the script below 3 times. The first time, say it slowly and deliberately. The second time, say it with more emotion and more conviction. On the third time, picture your victory moment in your mind and feel the full emotion, before you say your script.

I HAVE ABSOLUTE CONFIDENCE… I HAVE TOTAL FAITH… I WILL MAKE THIS GOAL HAPPEN… THERE IS NO FORCE ON EARTH THAT CAN STOP ME… IT IS MY DESTINY TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN… I WILL NOT BE DENIED… THERE IS NO QUESTION IN MY MIND… I WILL ACHIEVE THIS VICTORY!

Picture Your Victory

Pump yourself up by imagining a powerful scene in your mind. Feel your victory before you say your script for the third time.

“Here’s the last step in Powertalking: before you start your third session, please take 60 seconds to state out loud exactly what the victory’s trigger moment will look like.

Make sure you make it as intense, present tense, vivid and emotional as possible … and please don’t stop until you get to some strong Alpha emotion; that is, until you feel the excitement and passion that you will feel when you get there.”

Personal Powertalking Example

"I absolutely claim that in the next four months, I will get into two new circles of friends and start building my social life right now."

"I have total-confidence that this is going to happen (he starts visualizing a circle of new friends around him) and in the next ninety days, there is absolutely nothing that can keep me from bringing these new people into my life."

"I will start going to two social events every week, and I will right-now, starting today, start on an exercise and diet routine that will, without question, get me to my target weight of 175 pounds in ninety days."

“I can do it, I know I can do it, and nothing will stop me from making these changes in my life, starting right now!”

Business Powertalking Example

“I have absolute confidence and total faith this year will be the best of my career. There is no doubt in my mind that I can and will raise my production numbers in the next six months, and that I am going to shine throughout the rest of the fiscal year.”

“It is my destiny to make this happen, and in the next 90 days, I will bring in two million dollars worth of new orders.”

“There is no force on earth that can stop me from making this happen. I commit to doing at least 20 new meetings this month, and I can and I will ace every single one of them.”

“I have the talent, I absolutely have the sales skills and I have the guts to make this happen, and at the end of the year, I will be the area’s top salesperson.”

Mean what you say, and say what you mean, but most importantly say it like you mean it.